Justin Rose Wins The 2013 US Open

The 113th US Open was one of the most grueling four days golf has ever seen. And with a packed leaderboard heading into the final day, America’s major championship came down to the wire, as Justin Rose seized the win.

The US Open, one of golf’s four major championships, truly tests a golfer’s skills, and the 2013 installment at Merion Golf Club in Ardmore, Penn. was even tougher than usual. But after four grueling rounds of golf, Justin Rose proved he was up to the test, winning the championship by two strokes.

Justin Rose Wins The 2013 US Open

Like all great major tournaments, this one went down to the wire. Justin, who was strong and steady throughout the tournament, went into the clubhouse as the leader at +1 and had to sit and watch as the remaning players finished their rounds.

And after Phil Mickelson parred the 17th hole, he needed to birdie the 18th to send the tournament to a playoff. That birdie never came. This is Justin’s first major win, and he is the first English golfer to win the US Open since Tony Jacklin in 1970.

Merion Golf Club, which had initially been criticized as too easy, was actually one of the tougher challenges in recent US Open history, and the scores show it. No players — not even Justin Rose — finished the tournament below par, and top golfers like Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy didn’t even come close to winning, finishing +13 and +14, respectively.

2013 US Open: Tiger Woods Struggles

On his disappointing US Open outing, Tiger said:

There’s always a lesson to be learned in every tournament whether you win or lose. I’ll look back at the things I did right and the things I did wrong.

His 13 over par score was the worst he’s ever recorded at a major championship. He remains four major championships away from tying Jack Nicklaus for the most in history.